St. Petersburg State University has ordered students and staff to use the Max messenger as its internal communications platform “for online communication and information sharing,” the independent Russian news outlet T-invariant reported.

The order was signed by Vladimir Starostenko, the university’s vice rector for digital transformation and information security, and requires the human resources department to brief all incoming employees on the new rules upon hiring.

SPbGU staff members who spoke to T-invariant on condition of anonymity said the directive had been distributed to all university departments.

“Of course everyone is unhappy — before this, people mostly refused. Now everyone is doing what they advise online: installing Max on a second phone. I just installed the desktop version on my work computer. I haven’t installed it on my personal phone, and I’m not going to,” one staff member said.

The same source said no actual “communication and information sharing” among university staff had yet taken place on the Max messenger.

The Max messenger was launched by VK in spring 2025. Russian authorities have mounted an active campaign effectively coercing Russians into using Max — migrating building and school chats to it, using it to log in to the Gosuslugi government services portal, and to verify age when purchasing alcohol at some retail chains. Meanwhile, Russia is blocking WhatsApp and Telegram.